three kingdoms of Goguryeo (고구려, 高句麗), Baekje (백제, 百濟), and Silla (신라, 新

羅). Goguryeo was later known as Goryeo (고려, 高麗), from which the modern name Korea is
derived. The Three Kingdoms period is defined as being from 57 BC to 668 AD (but there existed
about 78 tribal states in the southern region of the Korean Peninsula and relatively big states
like Okjeo, Buyeo, and Dongye in its northern part and Manchuria).
The three kingdoms occupied the entire Korean Peninsula and roughly half of Manchuria, located in
present-day China and Russia.[1] The kingdoms of Baekje and Silla dominated the southern half of
the Korean Peninsula and Tamna (Jeju Island), whereas Goguryeo controlled the Liaodong
Peninsula, Manchuria and the northern half of the Korean Peninsula. Baekje and Goguryeo shared
founding myths which likely originated from Buyeo.[2]
In the 7th century, allied with China under the Tang dynasty, Silla unified the Korean Peninsula for
the first time in Korean history, allowing for the first united Korean national identity. After the fall of
Baekje and Goguryeo, the Tang dynasty established a short-lived military government to administer
parts of the Korean peninsula. However, as a result of the Silla–Tang War (≈670–676), Silla forces
expelled the Protectorate armies from the peninsula in 676. The following period is known as the
Unified Silla or Later Silla (668–935).
Subsequently, Go of Balhae, a former Goguryeo general, founded Balhae in the former territory of
Goguryeo after defeating the Tang dynasty at the Battle of Tianmenling.
The predecessor period, before the development of the full-fledged kingdoms, is sometimes
called Proto–Three Kingdoms period.
Main primary sources for this period include Samguk sagi and Samguk yusa in Korea, and the
"Eastern Barbarians" section (東夷傳) from the Book of Wei (魏書) of the Records of the Three
Kingdoms in China.

Contents

 1Names
 2Background
 3Goguryeo
 4Baekje
 5Silla
 6Other states
 7Fate
 8Archaeological perspectives
o 8.1Foundation (c. 0 – 300/400 AD)
o 8.2Burials
o 8.3Factory-scale production of pottery and roof-tiles
o 8.4Capital cities, elite precincts, and monumental architecture
 9See also
 10References
 11Further reading
 12External links

Names[edit]
See also: Names of Korea
Beginning in the 7th century, the name "Samhan" became synonymous with the Three Kingdoms of
Korea. The "Han" in the names of the Korean Empire, Daehan Jeguk, and the Republic of
Korea (South Korea), Daehan Minguk or Hanguk, are named in reference to the Three Kingdoms of
Korea, not the ancient confederacies in the southern Korean Peninsula. [3][4]
According to the Samguk sagi and Samguk yusa, Silla implemented a national policy, "Samhan
Unification" (삼한일통; 三韓一統), to integrate Baekje and Goguryeo refugees. In 1982, a memorial
stone dating back to 686 was discovered in Cheongju with an inscription: "The Three Han were
unified and the domain was expanded." [3] During the Later Silla period, the concepts of Samhan as
the ancient confederacies and the Three Kingdoms of Korea were merged. [3] In a letter to an imperial
tutor of the Tang dynasty, Choe Chiwon equated Byeonhan to Baekje, Jinhan to Silla, and Mahan to
Goguryeo.[4] By the Goryeo period, Samhan became a common name to refer to all of Korea. [3] In his
Ten Mandates to his descendants, Wang Geon declared that he had unified the Three Han
(Samhan), referring to the Three Kingdoms of Korea.[3][4] Samhan continued to be a common name
for Korea during the Joseon period and was widely referenced in the Annals of the Joseon Dynasty.[3]
In China, the Three Kingdoms of Korea were collectively called Samhan since the beginning of the
7th century.[5] The use of the name Samhan to indicate the Three Kingdoms of Korea was
widespread in the Tang dynasty.[6] Goguryeo was alternately called Mahan by the Tang dynasty, as
evidenced by a Tang document that called Goguryeo generals "Mahan leaders" (마한추장; 馬韓酋
長) in 645.[5] In 651, Emperor Gaozong of Tang sent a message to the king of Baekje referring to the
Three Kingdoms of Korea as Samhan. [3] Epitaphs of the Tang dynasty, including those belonging to
Baekje, Goguryeo, and Silla refugees and migrants, called the Three Kingdoms of Korea "Samhan",
especially Goguryeo.[6] For example, the epitaph of Go Hyeon (고현; 高玄), a Tang dynasty general
of Goguryeo origin who died in 690, calls him a "Liaodong Samhan man" (요동 삼한인; 遼東 三韓人).
[5]
 The History of Liao equates Byeonhan to Silla, Jinhan to Buyeo, and Mahan to Goguryeo. [4]
The name "Three Kingdoms" was used in the titles of the Korean histories Samguk
sagi (12th century) and Samguk yusa (13th century), and should not be confused with the Three
Kingdoms of China.